Engagements
by AVtwilight
Summary: Herald Henry Haddock the Third was getting married. Who's the lucky bride? Heather Brown of course! Their wedding was supposed to be perfect; however, fate has other plans. What happens when a blonde haired woman comes running into the chapel, fainting in the middle of the isle? Who is she? Where did she come from? Well, she's Astrid Haddock of course… wait what?
1. Prologue

**Herald Henry Haddock the Third was getting married. Who's the lucky bride? Heather Brown of course! Their wedding was supposed to be perfect; however, fate has other plans. What happens when a blonde haired woman comes running into the chapel, fainting in the middle of the isle? Who is she? Where did she come from? Well, she's Astrid Haddock of course… wait what?**

* * *

 **ENGAGEMENTS**

 _ **AVtwlight**_

* * *

 _Prologue_

"Why don't you just tell me how you feel?" she asked, almost begged, him as he began to walk away from her. Desperate, she ran and hung on to his arm, as he tried desperately to release himself of her hold. "Please! I'm so tired of looking for answers which aren't there. I just want to help you, but you won't let me! I'm so tired of begging…"

"Why don't you just leave, then, if that's the case?" he spat, finally pushing her off him. He glared at with such an intensity her knees began to wobble. Her faded, worn out sapphire blue eyes let out waterfalls as salty tears burned trails down her sunken cheeks. She quickly made to wipe them away when she saw his face turn into one of disgust.

"I'm sorry," she began shakily, her legs beginning to give out on her. She continued on, trying to stop her crying. "I'm sorry if I did something wrong… I'm sorry if I'm not enough. But _please_. Please, I love you! I love you so much, and I want you – I _need_ you to see that. My heart still aches for you, after all these years." Her tears did not stop. He still glared at her, and he still looked at her with nothing in his eyes. With a sniffle, she concluded, "I love you; I love you so much it hurts me to see you like this! To see us like this!"

"Then leave," he repeated, his voice nonchalant. He turned away from her.

She cried out in anger, and grabbing the nearest thing – a vase – she threw it at him with so much force it caused him to fall on his knees, the porcelain cracking with a sickening sound on the floor behind him. She gasped at what she had done and seemed to cry harder. She heard sobs as well, and she moved to kneel next to him, and embraced him. She held onto him tightly, for fear he would let go.

Both cried in the coldness of their hug, and time seemed to move slower as their hearts broke. Finally, he pushed her away, albeit forcefully, and stood. She stared at him, and he gazed at her, tear stains on their cheeks. The words he said next haunted her for the rest of her life:

"I hate you. We were never meant to be."

And he left. She let him. There was nothing left to do, and nothing left to say. Though, there were problems left unsolved, and she hated that. Glancing at her left ring finger, she let out an anguished cry. She removed the golden ring which lay upon her fourth finger and threw it at the wall in front of her. She cried for a few moments more.

When she could cry no more, she stood shakily, and walked over to where the ring lay, shining as bright as ever. She kneeled and picked it up, placing it back on her finger. "I promised myself I would help you." She kissed the ring. "... And I will fulfill that promise."

* * *

 **A/N: Hey! Thanks for taking the time to read this here prologue. Here's a bit more information about the story in case you're wondering. So, this is a Modern AU of course. Originally I planned to have the setting in high school or something, but it seemed so unoriginal and cliché. I began to then rewrite the whole plot and have it while they're in their early thirties. So that means they're** _ **waaaay**_ **out of high school. Hehe…**

 _ **~ AV**_


	2. Chapter 1

**Engagements**

 _ **AVtwlight**_

* * *

 _Chapter One_

* * *

It wasn't that much of a big deal was it?

Astrid bit her lip as she studied his face, eyes narrowed, brow creased in frustration, a frown on his lips. He stared at her and she couldn't tell really if he was disappointed or angry. She guessed both. However, she couldn't understand why he was being so stubborn. She guessed it applied to her as well, but her focus was on her husband. What she really didn't get though was why he was pouting at her now. They were having so much fun a while ago…

Well, they were. It just disappeared when she told him, "Sorry for being weird," after she finished a giggling fit (long story). They were just about to spend another night together, but what was different was the fact that they were miraculously cuddling for once. Now he'd rolled out of her arms and jumped out of the bed and was giving her that look. That stupid face she hated so much. She glared at him.

"What did I do?"

Her question hung in the air, and she seemed to have imitated his frown in the process. His face had softened into a blank look, and suddenly it was just a staring contest. She sat up on the bed, unmoving, before her lips parted again to ask another question. Before she could speak however, he crawled back into bed and lay beside her, but not close enough to her. He left as large amount of space he could and turned. His back faced towards her and she bit back a snarky comment, turning her back on him as well.

She closed her eyes, hoping for some form of good sleep for once in the past eight years. She found her chest beating rapidly when he surprisingly said, "Good night, Astrid."

She did not dwell on his statement or the reason why he said it instead of the clichéd 'I love you'. She simply returned the greeting, and then went to sleep. There was nothing left to say, and nothing left to do. That was the thing about their marriage. There just seemed to be nothing left.

Oh, she couldn't deny that there was still a spark. But the raging fire had turned into the mere flame of a candle, fighting to stay alive in the blowing wind. She kept fighting before, but that was when she had someone to fight for. Now, they were just two people, two strangers, who had to live together just because she had given birth to two children (they were still angels and blessings in their eyes) and neither wanted to leave them with just one parent.

Sometimes she fooled herself. She filled her head with thoughts that there was still a chance. She could still win back his affection, his adoration… his love. But so far, that was proving to be worthless and just the stupid dream of a foolish woman who once thought she'd found her happily ever after in a guy who barely spared her a second glance.

But there was no silencing the question: where did they go wrong?

When Astrid woke up the next morning, her husband was gone. She sighed, used to his absence. She merely did her usual routine, dressing up for work and heading down to cook breakfast. Only to find breakfast left on the table. Her eyes lit up and she smiled so wide. Maybe they were finally getting back on track!

She hopped her way over to the table, and saw a note on top of the covered food. _'For the kids' lunch,'_ it read in his messy scrawl. Disappointment showed in her features, and she assumed he overslept a little and wasn't able to put Melina's and Joseph's food into their respective lunchboxes. Her heart swelled, and she dealt with the pain like she did every other day.

She bottled it up, and tossed it into the pit of bottled up emotions in her head. It's what kept her so violent, strict, and bossy over the years. It's helped her to become less vulnerable to the tolls such great emotions would put upon her. It was slightly harder to do so though, over the years she'd spent fighting, laughing, crying, and smiling with Herald. He was her husband after all. They just were on an ultimately rocky road.

It was an unhealthy marriage.

Often times she'd find herself staring out into space, millions of thoughts in her head. It would take her kids and her colleagues to snap her out of it, and even then she couldn't stop the words and memories in her head from flowing.

Sometimes she'd hold on to the days when they'd go back to who they used to be: lovers without a care for the world. That time had passed though. Now that she was forty she couldn't help but feel so bitter and angry that their relationship had come to this. But she was stuck with him and him with her… for the sake of the kids.

"Mama, are you okay?" Melina had woken up and was now heading downstairs. She was seven, but she was observant. Just like her father, she mused sadly. The girl hugged her mother and Astrid bent down to kiss her forehead.

"Of course, 'Lisa, I'm fine. Why wouldn't I be?"

"Because you're crying," the girl stated, watching her mother with curious eyes.

Astrid's hand shot up to her cheek, and she felt that it was indeed damp with tears. How that was possible, she really didn't know. "Oh," her voice cracked, "I never noticed. Sorry for worrying you, Lisa. Now wake your brother up and you, young lady, take a bath and get ready for school."

The girl nodded. "Yes, Mama!"

Astrid watched her daughter as she ran off to wake five year old little Joseph up. She smiled sadly when she took note of her green eyes – so much like her father's – and dirty blonde hair. Joseph, however, was a complete replica of Herald himself. She used to make jokes about how they should've named him Hiccup. Herald merely laughed then.

Astrid shook off her depressing thoughts and put up a happy face as she, too, made her way up to the second floor. She could live without breakfast. She couldn't with her family going down the drain.

If only she had another chance.


	3. Chapter 2

**Engagements**

 _ **AV twilight**_

* * *

 _Chapter Two_

* * *

She got home that night with the kids singing "Let it Go" at the back seat, swaying slowly to the music. Astrid smiled softly at their joy, but her heart broke as well, knowing they wouldn't be as happy as they were now if they knew about her and Herald's predicament. Sighing, she turned the radio off and told her children that they could listen to the song another time after they complained about her turning the stereo off. Melisa and Joseph giggled when their Mom said she'd order pizza if they'd get out of the car and stopped complaining.

They ran out of the car and watched their mother waddle out of the car, lock it, and head out to their front door with the house key in hand. They were both jumping and singing some silly song about pizza and ran straight to the telephone once the door was open and Astrid flicked the light switch. She rolled her eyes at her children's antics. If there was one thing they could do well it was order pizza. Or, Melisa was good at it. She was seven after all.

Astrid left them to their playfulness and sauntered up to the second floor, heading to her bedroom. She plopped down onto the bed, not wanting to change or do anything. She just wanted to sleep. She was so tired…

She heard the sound of Herald's car parking outside and suddenly she felt like a thousand ton weight lift had dropped down and crushed her. _Why?_ She groaned internally, dreading Herald's coming. "Astrid!" she heard him yell from below. She ignored his call and turned over in bed, just wanting to disappear into the white sheets of the bed. She wanted to simply stop existing.

She heard Herald enter the room and place a soft hand on her shoulder. She shivered. "Hey…" he whispered, gently coaxing her to turn and face him. "Are you okay?"

When their eyes met, Astrid felt her lips trembling. His face was alight and he was smiling softly at her. He seemed to be in a good mood that night… she didn't want to ruin it. "Fine," came her answer, and she instantly regretted ever speaking when his smile wavered.

"You aren't," he stated, sitting next to her. She felt like crying. She felt so stupid.

Silence came over the two as both struggled with something to say. It was Herald who broke the silence. Taking his wife's hand, he said, "Look, I've been thinking a lot about us lately and… I think this isn't working all that well, Astrid."

Her heart dropped. "I… I have something to ask of you, Herald." He simply squeezed her hand, urging her to continue. She averted her gaze for a moment, looking for the right words to say, and finally the words tumbled out of her mouth. "What's wrong with me?"

He seemed taken aback by her question, and he let go of her hand. "What?" he asked confused.

"I mean, you always turn away from me! It seems that almost everything I do upsets you, or makes you disappointed. It's like you're running away from me, and every step I take makes you a thousand miles farther away! Tell me, please, why are you becoming less of you and more of someone else? Is it something about me, or something I've done?" She turned bright red at her confession and even more when he stared at her with a flabbergasted expression. Slowly he stood and Astrid felt her heart break again.

"Why don't you just tell me how you feel?" she asked, almost begged, him as he began to walk away from her. Desperate, she ran and hung on to his arm, as he tried desperately to release himself of her hold. "Please! I'm so tired of looking for answers which aren't there. I just want to help you, but you won't let me! I'm so tired of begging…"

"Why don't you just leave then, if that's the case?"

If you ever asked Melisa and Joseph about Astrid and Herald's fight that night, they would laugh and tell you, "You're crazy! Our parents have never fought, and when they do fight, it's always about little things, and they'd always make up soon after. If you're telling us our parents never once got along, you're telling the wrong kids!"

Astrid woke up with a headache and a blinding light piercing her eyes. She hissed in pain, waited a few moments for her eyes to get used to the light, and finally took in where she was. A wire was connected to her wrist and another attached to her elbow. A steady slow beeping echoed throughout the almost bare room, walls painted white and a smell of disinfectant in the air. Puzzled, she sat up, and tried to remember what could have led to her being in the room from the events of last night. However, she only remembered her fight with Hiccup and sighed in defeat.

She waited for a few moments. Her patience was wearing thin and just as she was about to tear the wires off her arm a woman, presumably in her late forties, entered the room, a slight spring in her step.

"Oh, you're awake!" she exclaimed, and then smiled. "Good, good."

She hurried over to Astrid and placed a hand on her forehead. "Fever's subsiding too," she noted, then took a medicinal pill from the table next to the bed and made her swallow it with a warm glass of water. "Had people worried you know," the nurse – as Astrid observed she seemed to be – tsked. "Can't have young, pretty girls like you sprawled out on the side walk – scared the hell out of people I tell you! Are you drinking young lady? You don't seem to have any physical or mental deficiencies."

Astrid was growing tired of the nurse's babbling when the words 'sprawled out on the sidewalk' caught her attention. "Excuse me? No, I don't drink, but… you said I was sprawled out on the sidewalk?"

The nurse rolled her eyes. "Well, yeah! You're lucky you were found by good willed people and not some thug. You could have easily been raped or worse, you know!"

Astrid shuddered at the thought of being violated like the nurse suggested and silently thanked whoever found her found her. Then she grew confused. "I don't get it. The last I remember I had a big fight with my husband over something personal."

The nurse stared at her curiously. "You don't have a husband."

"Excuse me, what?" Astrid asked, offended. There was still her wedding ring on her finger…

The nurse shrugged. "I'm sorry sweetie. But you're Astrid Hofferson, right? We looked at your records through the name on the credit card in your wallet and you're single and parentless. I think we're going to have to diagnose you with amnesia, or mental. You were probably only dreaming!"

Astrid stared at the nurse, mouth agape. "What? That's not… that's not possible!"

"I'm afraid it is, dear."

Astrid buried her face in her hands. The nurse placed a comforting hand on her shoulder. "Tell you what, sweetie. Since you have no family and it seems as if you have nowhere to go, I'll be happy to take you in under my roof. Just until things settle down and you can fend for yourself. My husband and I'll be happy to let you stay!"

Astrid blinked back the tears which threatened to fall and nodded. "Thank you. Um, where's the bathroom?"

The nurse smiled softly at her and said, "See that door to the left? Yeah, get in there and freshen yourself up. I'll bust you out of this hospital, my shift's almost ending, and we'll go get you settled into Berk. What do you say?"

"Sounds fun."

"Brilliant!" Turning, the nurse left the room and Astrid headed towards the bathroom, wondering about the past events, when she looked up to a surprise.

 **A/N: Hey! Sorry, but for some reason I typed Melisa as Melina in the last chappie. Big mistake. So sorry! But I'm a klutz sometimes hehe. Forgive me.**

 **In case some of you are wondering, update schedule is every five days, more or less. Depends if I can keep up. xD**

 **See ya!**

 _ **~ AV**_


	4. Chapter 3

**Engagements**

 _ **AVtwilight**_

* * *

 _Chapter Three_

* * *

She placed a shaking finger on her cheek, as she blinked multiple times; trying to tell if what she was seeing was real. She stared long and hard into her blue orbs, hoping that whatever was happening would stop and she would see the wrinkles that had begun to line her forehead, her sunken cheeks, pale skin, and slightly cracked lips. But they didn't surface.

She was _young again_.

Her face was clean and smooth, her cheeks fuller, her lips less cracked and moister. Her eyes, from being dull and ready to let go of tears looked bluer than they ever had for eight years. And her hair – her damn hair! From hanging lifeless and tangled it was less of both and more of the spun gold it used to portray. She was… she was 'Astrid' again. She finally lived up to her name. She was the divine beauty who Herald fell for.

Her lips fell into a frown. She was the divine beauty Herald fell for. She shook the thought away, knowing Herald was too kind, too gentle, too… _Hiccup_. He would never fall for looks. He wasn't shallow. He was a wonderful man who fell for personalities more than looks. Even if she weren't attractive he still would have fallen for her, right? Her thoughts traveled to the fact that she had grown uglier and more lifeless over the years. And at the same time, he started fading away too.

She growled and mentally slapped herself. She had to pull herself together. Herald wouldn't leave her for something as vile as that. There had to be another reason – it was _not_ because of her looks. It just couldn't be.

She sighed and turned the faucet. She splashed water onto her face and wiped it with her hospital gown. She had her predicament to worry about, and she had her kids to worry about. She couldn't afford to think of why Herald had turned so cold towards her and drown herself in self-pity. However, she did just that, and stared at nothing and the sink at the same time, trying to make sense of everything about her and Herald's relationship.

Her thoughts lingered there for a moment before she turned over to what the nurse had said. She had no family whatsoever and she wasn't married. She frowned, and glanced at her left finger. The ring was still there, shining bright gold and the white gemstone set on it was bright as ever. Perhaps her records were wrong? And didn't she have her mother-in-law? What could've happened? Her brain was searching for answers, though it couldn't seem to find any. But she had to get answers.

Dead-set on solving her problem, she left the bathroom and came face to face with the kind, old nurse who had offered to give her shelter. "Come on, dearie, you're safe enough to leave. I got a few medicinal pills just in case, though. Oh, and I got your belongings too."

Astrid nodded and walked over to the bed, where she saw her hand bag – the one she wore all the time – and a fresh plain yellow blouse and blue pants. She took the clothes and went back into the bathroom, trying to avoid the mirror as best as she could. She didn't want to look at her face. It was a sad reminder of the situation she was caught in. She changed quickly, and was glad to find that there was a bra and an undergarment hidden in the folds of the shirt.

She left the bathroom and the woman ushered her out of the hospital room. They walked in the halls, the nurse leading while Astrid stayed behind, following. They didn't speak for the duration of the walk, and Astrid was thankful. She wasn't in the mood for a conversation, and instead she took to observing her surroundings. The hallways were lined with white walls and beige square tiles. There were doors leading to different rooms here and there, some open, some closed. The halls were mostly empty, save for a nurse or two running into rooms or farther down and into other floors. There were also a few doctors and visitors coming either from or opposite their direction. None payed mind to them, though.

They finally went through the glass doors, exiting the building and heading for the nearby parking lot. Astrid realized just how cold the hospital was, since she cringed at the sudden feeling of the sun's heat. A sudden thought came to her mind, and she asked, "Hey, excuse me?"

The nurse stopped walking and turned to her with a small smile, her eyes betraying concern. "Yes? Is anything wrong? Is the sun's heat getting to you?"

"No, no. I just wanted to ask you for your name?" she asked, a little bit baffled at the nurse's sudden display of motherly concern for her well-being. She wasn't very used to that, given her own mother died a long time ago, even being in her situation. "Oh, and what's today's date?"

The woman's smile grew wider and she said, "My name's Juliet Romero. Don't ask – I know it's technically a Shakespeare reference of sorts. Today's date is July twenty-fifth dear, why do you ask?"

"Just asking," Astrid replied, shrugging. "What year though?"

"It's two-thousand-thirteen, why?"

Astrid's eyes widened. _Sweet Thor Almighty_. She stumbled back for a moment. Did she… But how… was it even possible? The last time she checked, it was two-thousand-twenty-one, eight years from now. How could it be? How could she have traveled through time? The last she remembered was falling asleep, dried tear stains on her cheeks. She and Herald had fought. She had hurt him. He left. He… _left_.

"Are you okay?" Juliet was at her side in an instant. Astrid put p the best fake smile she could muster.

"I guess I'm just worried I might've been asleep for years or something."

Juliet gave a hearty laugh and continued walking. Her stride suddenly became more relaxed rather than the uptight and sophisticated one she had a while ago, and Astrid found herself feeling more at comfort with the old nurse's company. They stopped at a blue and gold convertible, and Astrid, despite herself, was more than eager to hop in. Because, "I can't believe you have one of these! I'd recognize this anywhere – it's a Deadly Nadder! Hell, I can't believe you have one!"

Julie merely smirked and claimed that even someone of her age and gender still found fun in cars. No need for discrimination, biases, or judgement there.

For the whole ride, the two women found themselves talking and laughing. They grew slightly closer to each other, and have found a small start at a friendship within each other. For a moment, everything seemed right. For a moment, Astrid forgot about everything. Sadly, moments have to end.

 **A/N: Hello! Thanks for all the follows, favorites, and reviews guys! I really appreciate the support, especially since this is my first story ever. Hehe.**

 **Anyway, thing is, the update schedule will stay only until this Saturday. That will be the last update, since Christmas Break is ending soon. I'm changing the schedule to every Saturday. Okay, given my last sentence, it's quite ironic. Gosh...**

 **And guys! I just noticed something! Water should be free right? God gave it to us for free (based on Christianity. In other religions, your god/gods I refer to), right? So, where in the world is the stupidest bloke who came up with _selling water_? Oh, oh, I know! SNOTLOUT JORGENSON. **

**I'VE GOT A FEW THINGS TO SETTLE WITH THAT IDIOT.**

 **Well, see you!**

 _ **AVtwilight**_


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